Anger over signage attacks

Independent MP Rob Messenger removes one of his election signs that was defaced by vandals, who also targeted LNP signs.Max Fleet

by Carolyn Archer

THERE are two certainties during an election - campaign signs will go up, and people will vandalise them.

But while many candidates have laughed off the sporadic and mostly harmless extra "artwork" on their signs, a targeted attack was carried out on many of Member for Burnett Rob Messenger's signs across the electorate overnight Sunday.

Mr Messenger said a number of supporters had called his office to let him know pink spray paint now adorned many of his corflutes.

"The attack on my corflutes was obviously a very sophisticated and co-ordinated attack by one particular group, using the same spray paint," he said.

"It was very brazen and it's just one more example of the dirty tricks campaign that has been launched against me since I resigned from the LNP and became an independent."

"None of the other political candidates have been attacked like this."

The sitting MP is now planning to make a police complaint.

Mr Messenger was also angry one of his signs in Agnes Water had been repositioned by LNP rival Stephen Bennett, who has also had some of his own signs damaged.

Mr Bennett told the News-Mail he had done "the Australian thing" and had hammered Mr Messenger's dislodged sign back into the ground while putting up his own sign.

In the Bundaberg electorate, incumbent MP Jack Dempsey laughed off some of the extra features he had been given on his poster, such as devil horns.

"It's part and parcel of a campaign," Mr Dempsey said.

"It's obvious that we have a budding group of artists out there."

Labor's candidate for Bundaberg, Cindy Hyland, said she also accepted the graffiti came with the territory.

And while she hadn't spotted any on her signs, she was pragmatic.

"I'm anticipating with confidence that at some stage it will happen," she said.